Battle of Dead Man’s Cove
The Battle of Dead Man’s Cove was a battle fought in the Om campaign. Background In early Twins of 465 intelligence came to Duke Marcus Cornelius Agrippa of a haven of pirates from the Brotherhood of the Coast had holed up at Dead Man’s Cove. As much of the Western Gildornian fleet was engaged in maneuvers on Socortia, Duke Agrippa ordered Captain Horatio Higgs to gather the remaining strength of the Gildornian ships in Waymere and lead a mission to wipe out the pirates. The pirates, meanwhile, were believed to have allied with the Kingdom of Orlesea and there was rumored to be an Orlesean fleet in the area, however, as there was not a state of war between Orlesea and Gildorn. Because of this Higgs was under strict orders not to fire on any Orlesean ships unless fired upon first. Forces Captain Higgs commanded the one Ship of the Line (the Defender, which also served as his flagship), two Frigates (the Falcon and the Zealous) and two Brigs (the Harp and the Dart.) The Brotherhood of the Coast commanded two Frigates (the Conquest and the Damnation), and three Sailing Ships (the Hangman, the Retribution and the Abyss). The rumors of an Orlesean fleet in the area proved correct, and in fact the majority of the Orlesean ships that had escaped the Battle of Socortia were at Dead Man’s Cove under the command of Captain Gaston Richelieu. This consisted of one ship of the line (the Courageuse), three frigates (the Gloire, ''La Flèche'' and the Nemesis) and two Corvettes (the Renaed and the Laupin.) Unbeknownst to the Gildornians, Orlesea and the Brotherhood of the Coast had also forged an alliance with the Kythonian Imperium who had a longship, the Fury, at Dead Man’s Cove as well. Pre-Battle As Captain Higgs’ squad approached Dead Man’s Cove, he ordered the Dart ahead to scout the area. In short order her commander, Captain George Coolidge, signaled back that the Brotherhood ship Hangman, ''commanded by Benjamin "Mad Ben" Pike, was sighted. Higgs ordered his squadron in immediately with orders to take, burn or sink all pirate ships and avoid attacking Orlesean ships unless attacked first. Battle The Battle, such as it was, was fairly short lived. The Brotherhood fleet was not caught in port as Higgs had hoped, as they had been tipped off by the Orlesean spymaster Felix Lapubelle of the attack. The Orlesean fleet was anchored off port some distance and it was not immediately clear to the Gildornians if they would join the battle or merely observe. Higgs ordered the fleet ahead, with the ''Dart and Harp, as the most maneuverable of the ships, taking point to maneuver around the dangerous shoals of the cove. Captain Coolidge sailed ahead in the Dart, attacking the Hangman with a ferocity, in spite of the rapidly approaching Brotherhood ships. The aggressive tactic paid off, and the Hangman soon took critical damage and was sunk. This would prove to be Gildorn’s only victory in the battle. As expected the pirate retaliated, badly damaging the Dart and engaging the other ships. However the Orleseans immediately engaged as well, catching the Gildornian ships in a pincer maneuver and bombarding them promptly. Only the Defender, less maneuverable and than the others and bringing up the rear to allow the more nimble ships to track the rough shoals, was spared this initial onslaught. Seeing that his squadron was decimated and there was no hope of victory, Higgs ordered a retreat and withdrew from the battle, the Defender easily outrunning the enemy ships on the open water. Aftermath With the exception of the Defender, the entire Gildornian squadron was either sunk or captured, and the exact fate of the crews and officers is not known. Duke Agrippa Court-martialed Captain Higgs for Cowardice and Dereliction of Duty and sentenced him to death. With the loss of Higgs’ squadron, Waymere was left without significant naval defenses, which paved the way for the invasion of the city in the Battle of Waymere soon afterwards. Category:Om Category:Battles